Novel Review: In Trouble by Ellen Levine

Rating (Out of 5): ~3

Genre: YA Historical

Publisher: Carolrhoda Lab (Lerner Publishing)

Release Date: 2011

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells.

Goodreads Synopsis:

In Trouble is a novel born of author Ellen Levine's interviews with women who came of age in the late 1950s and early 1960s, including those who knew what it was like to be a teen facing a horrible choice. In the decades before Roe v. Wade, a young woman "in trouble" had very few options and all of them meant shame, isolation, and maybe much worse. Jamie and Elaine's stories are just two among the thousands of stories of teenagers facing unplanned pregnancies.

The Cover:

While not particularly eye-catching, I do think that the cover works for the book, and I like it's subtlety.

Review:

This book was just depressing.

It’s set in the 1950’s-1960’s, about two teen girls, and what happens when they get pregnant. The author did a lot of research, and it’s definitely true that it was very hard at that time, with little options and a lot of shame on the girls for it.

While I wasn’t terribly impressed with the writing or the characterization, I do think that the subject was handled realistically.

It just depresses me.

Novel Review: No Place to Run (KGI, #2) by Maya Banks

Rating (Out of 5): ~3

Genre: Adult Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Berkley Sensation (Penguin)

Release Date: 2010

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Sam Kelly was her first love.

The last person Sam Kelly expected to pull wounded from the lake was Sophie Lundgren. Once they shared a brief, intense affair while Sam was undercoverand then she vanished.She’s spent the last months on the run, knowing that any mistake would cost her life and that of her unborn child—Sam’s child. Now she’s resurfaced with a warning for Sam: this time, he’s the one in danger.

Now he’s her last chance.

Sam has too many questions to let her slip away again—like why she disappeared in the first place. This time he vows not to be seduced. But one look in her eyes, and the passion burns again, and Sam knows he’ll do anything to keep her and his child safe. However, Sophie’s dark past is more dangerous than he imagines, and the only way for either to survive it is to outrun it.

The Cover:

The cover for this book is just alright. It looks pretty average to me, very much like an adult romance with a cop-or-whatever plot line. It's not bad, but not particularly nice or stand out.

Quotes:

• "'I think maybe you’re used to people not being very nice to you. Maybe it’s time to alter your expectations, hmm?’” (Hardback, pg. 137)
• "Be a good man, have honor and integrity, protect those weaker than you, and never suffer injustice.” (Pg. 230) Generally good advice/morals for anyone.

Review:

This was one of Banks’ weaker books for me. It was just kind of slow, not as intense, and I didn’t really care as much for the characters.

I did care a little about the serious plot line, and it was interesting. I was a little interested in Sam and Sophie and Sophie’s background, and thus her plot. I did like Sam’s brothers, and am a little interested in reading some of the other books in this series.

The emotions just weren’t as strong or intense for me. The romance wasn’t that good, I didn’t feel as much for the characters as I would have liked. Sophie’s repeated statement of “my baby” got annoying. 

Overall this was a pretty average Banks book for me, sadly. I do intend to pick up another in the series, though, as well as more of her books in general. This was just a weaker one.

Manga Review: Black Bird, Volume 16, by Kanoko Sakurakouji

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: VIZ Media (Shojo Beat)

Publish Date: 2013

Volumes: 18

Spoilers?: Yes.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Powells. RightStuf!

Goodreads Synopsis:

He loves her blood, but does her love her?!There is a world of myth and magic that intersects ours, and only a special few can see it. Misao Harada is one such person, and she wants nothing to do with magical realms. She just wants to have a normal high school life and maybe get a boyfriend. But she is the bride of demon prophecy, and her blood grants incredible powers, her flesh immortality. Now the demon realm is fighting over the right to her hand...or her life!

Misao has made the choice to forgo college and a normal human life in order to be Kyo’s wife and mother to the demon child she carries. But her pregnancy is unusual, even for the demon world. The last pages of the Senka Roku will reveal the truth of the matter, but now that Kyo has it in his hands, does he really want to know…?

Review:

So, I like this series. It’s good, it’s drama-filled and steamy. It’s also a bit messy with the characters, and dragging on a little bit. But I’m not really minding the dragging on, although I am very looking forward to seeing how it ends.

So, first off, this volume was good. I liked it. What happened was needed. But it also gave me very big flashbacks to Breaking Dawn, something that I didn’t really enjoy, even if I did actually like, for the most part, that book.

Quite a bit of the volume is taken up with Kyo finding out that, when Misao gives birth, she’s going to die. And the resulting chaos of that. Kyo immediately wants to get rid of the baby, because he can’t stand the thought of not having Misao. His daitengu are forced to stop him, though, because that would be the downfall of his position of power, of maybe his life, and dangerous to Misao, even though none of them want Misao to die, as they love her too. Throughout all of this, Misao doesn’t say anything, as she’s kind of in a frozen state, not knowing what to do with herself, how to react, or what she wants.

But finally she stands up, and states that she’s going to have the baby. Which, finally, thank god. No one reacts well to this, as the daitengu had just decided to leave their positions or not follow Kyo and let him get rid of the baby. There’s a big confrontation after this, as Kyo is not okay with her decision, and says that he’ll hate the baby, and die himself, because he can’t live without Misao. I wanted her to get pissed off at him, to stand up and yell more, but the result was still good.

Kyo, though, gets determined then to find a cure, to find some clue, to find some way for Misao to have the baby and live. There’s tension here, because Kyo is moody and not sleeping and having nightmares, pushing Misao away and getting snippy at things she says. Misao, meanwhile, is lonely. She’s pregnant, her body is changing, everyone around her is busy finding out how to save her, and she’s feeling useless and alone.

Near the end of the volume, they seem to be onto something, although they’re not sure what, on how to save her. It’s Misao’s birthday and they’re celebrating, and Kyo calms down a bit. Things aren’t looking too good, but it seems like they’re going to figure something out. I have no doubt that the series will have a happy ending, but I’m excited to find out how that happens. I’m looking forward to seeing their relationship development, see where they’re going, see what happens with them. 

There are only a couple of volumes left (right?), and I’m looking forward to seeing what happens, where the story goes from here.

Manga Review: Black Bird, Volume 15, by Kanoko Sakurakouji

Rating (Out of 5): ~4-4.5

Publisher: VIZ Media (Shojo Beat)

Volumes: 17

Spoilers?: Yes, majorly.

Goodreads Synopsis:

  

He loves her blood, but does her love her?!Reads R to L (Japanese Style).

There is a world of myth and magic that intersects ours, and only a special few can see it. Misao Harada is one such person, and she wants nothing to do with magical realms. She just wants to have a normal high school life and maybe get a boyfriend. But she is the bride of demon prophecy, and her blood grants incredible powers, her flesh immortality. Now the demon realm is fighting over the right to her hand...or her life!
Sho's death should have meant a return to peace for Misao and Kyo, once they came to terms with their guilt. But instead Misao finds herself displaying strange new powers she can't quite control. Is this just the next stage for her as the Senka Maiden, or is something more sinister going on…?

Available on Amazon.

Review:

This series is almost over, you guys. There are only two volumes left, and probably six months between those two volumes’ release dates (ugh). I could tell, with this volume, that there are only a couple volumes left, and while it will probably be sad to see the series end, I’m looking forward to seeing how it happens.

Oh, this review is going to have some major spoilers, just to let you know.

For the first, maybe, two volumes, the story is pretty light-hearted, aside from some worrying about what’s going on with Misao. They find out that she is killing the creatures that come up to attack her, and they’re assuming that she’s doing it herself, and has somehow gotten powers. But, at the same time, she’s also been feeling a little under the weather, always tired and having weird eating habits.

At the same time, she’s also thinking about what she wants to do with her life. Everyone around her is deciding, but she has no idea. All she’s ever wanted, and all she still wants, is to be with Kyo, and she cant think of anything else. And then she decides, and talks to Kyo about how, she wants to be his bride. There’s a lot entailed in being a house wife, and that’s what she wants to do. He’s at first a bit hesitant, wanting to make sure that she’s sure that’s what she wants, but he accepts. Now, I understand that this is what she wants to do, and that it is all some people want to do, but I have a hard time being happy about it. I mean, she should aspire to something bigger. But I can accept it, I guess.

And then she realizes that it’s been a while since her last period.

Now, I wasn’t expecting this turn of events, not particularly up to the point she found out but that the story was heading in that direction from the start of the volume, but I wasn’t all that surprised. It makes some sense.

Anyway, she talks to Kyo immediately (which, good, she didn’t take forever thinking about it first), and he’s very supportive to whatever she decides (also very good. This, along with the making sure she knows what she wants, and giving her time, and taking such good care of her, have enforced my feelings for him. He's a great boyfriend). Of course, she’s very worried, but decides she wants to keep it, and everyone is very excited. Then they talk to her parents, and that goes over rather well; they even mention telling her parents that Kyo’s a demon sometime in the future, which should be interesting.

From then until the last chapter things are going rather well; they’re happy, teasing, making out, going to the beach, including a very cute scene where Misao falls and Kyo catches her, and Kyo and Misao talking with Misao's friends. And then there’s an attack on Kyo’s house. It doesn’t go very well, but they capture someone, and it's what he tells them that ruins all their happiness.

I’m not going to ruin what is revealed to them (gotta keep some secrets), but it’s not good, and you can probably guess.

I kind of love this series, and I’m really excited to find out what happens, to see what they do about it, how the series ends. I’m sure it’ll have a happy ending, but I’m looking forward to seeing how it happens. The wait is going to be horrible, but not much I can do about that.